No, wait, I mean Omnishambles…
My body is an omnishambles, not unlike my house.
Continue reading“Your body is a wonderland….”
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Monthly Archives: November 2022
Going back to the office
So, I am currently having quite the dilemma. Like many people out there in a post-Covid world.
To go back to the office or not go back to the office?
Continue readingThe Chateau strikes back….
So, once again I am learning more and more about the pros and cons (mostly cons) of Chateau D’Omnishambles…. This week it’s mould (mold?) and condensation…
Last winter this wasn’t something I noticed or cared about as last winter this house was a building site, with broken boiler, no radiators, plastering and construction going on and the doors and windows were open all winter while workmen trudged in and out etc. My previous house was a new build and extremely well-insultated so didn’t have this issue (that I was aware of).
This winter in the new house, we have discovered mould in all the windowsills, a result of the condensation running down the windows every morning since it turned cold.
Continue readingThe Tree Quilt
I’ve been wanting to make this one for ages. The original pattern had the tree “leaves”/circles all in one colour, which I think would have looked a bit better, but this was for my newest daughter and as we don’t have any of her baby clothes we wanted it to include other special memories for her like her football kit, school cardigan, pyjamas and nighties, favourite dress etc.
So it’s more colourful and a bit random in terms of a colour-scheme but it’s special and she loves it.
The Single Tax
Tonight I paid single tax.
That extra money for things that couples just don’t need to pay for.
S’s football training has been moved later in the evening and it’s a total logistical nightmare. Previously it was 6pm to 7pm on a Monday night, and that was hard enough, as I’d have to entertain a very tired 4-year old on the sidelines in the cold, dark, and often very wet side of the pitch. A usually goes to bed at 7pm and she has been especially knackered since starting school so on Mondays we don’t get home from football til 7.30 and then it’s almost 8pm by the time I can get her teeth brushed and into bed. It also doesn’t help that S’s football team is close to her old primary school which is not even remotely local and all the way across town.
Now the practice is from 6.30 – 7.30pm so that they can share the floodlights with another team, and it’s a massive pain in the arse.
I just can’t expect A to stay up that late, standing about in the cold dark drizzle. And I don’t want S to have to give up football either – she’s a very athletic kid who loves sports and has a lot of good friends on her team. Friendships have been tricky at her new school lately and so maintaining friendships outside of school is crucial right now.
So we have tried out a new babysitter, a local 6th former who babysits for my friend.
I put A to bed, waited til she fell asleep and then said teenager popped over and sat in my house watching telly while I drove across town to collect S from football practice.
Couples have a built-in partner who can just stay at home with the kid while you do this sort of thing. They don’t have to pay some random kid £5 a week so your kid can stay on their football team.
I’m especially annoyed about it as I literally never get to go out, and having a night out usually costs a fortune – you’ve paid £30-£40 before you’ve left the house so it’s just too expensive. But here I am paying a babysitter weekly, NOT so I can enjoy myself but to trundle about collecting the children from their activities.
It’s a tax only single parents have to pay. And I’m irrationally annoyed about it.
The Second Arsenal Quilt
In spite of the fact that my second nephew isn’t turning 18 for about 18 months, I decided to crack on with his quilt as it’s an easy pattern and one I was keen to try, and I had quite a lot of scraps of Arsenal shirts leftover from the first quilt for my older nephew!
It ain’t no cruise…
Being a parent, and especially a single parent, means being all things all of the time, whether you want to or not. It’s a huge responsibility to be the person holding everything together even when sometimes you don’t feel like it.
You are the anchor, keeping everything stable.
You are the Captain, in charge and sure of yourself and your decisions at all times.
You are the navigator, charting a course, figuring out where you are going and how you’re going to get there.
You are the ship itself, keeping everyone safe as you roll around in the stormy weather, reeling and rocking, getting pummelled and battered, while keeping them warm and dry.
You are the activities director, planning all the playdates and football matches and swimming lessons and fun stuff.
You are up the mast clinging to the pole trying to spot any icebergs bearing down upon you, working out if you can avoid them or not, or if you will inevitably have to take the hit.
You are the safe harbour when the outside world is too rough and inhospitable.
You are all of these things, and sometimes, you are also an exhausted human who needs their own safe harbour, and anchor and captain to look after you too.
If you’re lucky enough, you have a support system (or harbour) strong enough to hold you sometimes when you need to dock and refuel, to bolster you ready to head back out to sea and do it all over again.
Had we but world enough and time... 